Tunnel Work Coming For Gatlinburg Spur

Earlier this month the Great Smoky Mountains National Park announced that numerous bridges will be worked on within the park’s boundaries between now and August of 2023. Now the park says more work is on the way and this will affect the northbound spur between Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge. Traffic on the northbound Spur will be reduced to one lane starting January 3 through April 7, to allow for tunnel repairs. Concrete barriers will be placed along the center line of the tunnel to allow crews to make repairs within the closed lane while allowing traffic to move through via the open lane. To efficiently complete the work, closures will be in place 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Crews will be replacing drains, cleaning and painting the tunnel interior, replace sodium lights with new LED lights and install a propane-powered generator for emergency backup. Park officials say that throughout the project, motorists should expect traffic delays on the northbound spur.

This Thursday, December 1st, there will be lane closures in effect on the spur for crews to do tree removal. The lane closures will be for both northbound and southbound lanes.